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B2B Asia News
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This is a B2B Asia News Daily Update for 20 August 2026, reviewing regional and global markets, and covering the daily business news you shouldn’t miss.
Watch the video in English above.
- We start with a quick look at regional markets. Asian shares advanced Thursday, tracking Wall Street gains, and South Korea’s benchmark Kospi jumped more than 6% after sinking 5.8% on Wednesday.
- Japan’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.3%, reversing declines earlier in the week. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 1.1%, while the Shanghai Composite index rose 0.3%. Taiwan’s Taiex was nearly unchanged and India’s Sensex climbed 0.7%.
- Zooming in on Cambodia’s market—the Cambodia Securities Exchange Index was up 1.99 points or 0.42% to 479.2.
- Total trade volume was up with 623,577 shares changing hands at a total value of 4.4 billion riel or over $1.1 billion US dollars.
- On the main board, four stocks were up, led by Sihanoukville Autonomous Port, and the rest of the board stayed flat. Over on the growth board, DBD Engineering and JS Land were up, while Picasso City Garden was down.
- Shifting to the exchange rate, the Khmer riel to USD weakened slightly to 4,044 riel per US Dollar, while the US Dollar index hovered around 98.78.
- Looking at global commodities, oil prices climbed on Thursday on concerns the impasse in the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran will continue to disrupt supply from the key Middle Eastern producing region and tighten global supplies.
- Brent crude futures for October delivery rose 0.38% to $91.97 US dollars a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures for September added 17 cents to $86.00 US dollars a barrel. The more-active October WTI contract was up 0.45% to $84.77 US dollars. (0632 GMT)
- Gold fell as investors booked profits after prices climbed to an over two-month peak on a surprise U.S. Treasury liquidity-support announcement for long-duration bonds, which weakened the dollar and sent Treasury yields lower.
- Spot gold was down 0.7% at $4,487.63 US dollars per ounce. Earlier, bullion was at $4,525.79 US dollars, its highest since June 2, after a more than 4% advance on Wednesday. U.S. gold futures were little changed at $4,545.60 US dollars. (0604 GMT)
Looking at the crypto market, the price of Bitcoin rose to $69,825 US dollars, up more than 8.5% from Tuesday’s price. This is the highest level Bitcoin has seen since early June, when it fell below $70,000 US dollars. The price of Ether, the second most valuable token, rose to $2,261.26 US dollars—up more than 18.3% compared to Tuesday.
- Moving on now to other business-related news,
- H.E. Sun Chanthol, Deputy Prime Minister and First Vice Chairman of the Council for the Development of Cambodia (CDC), received a courtesy call and held a working discussion with an international business delegation from Japan, Singapore and Hong Kong on August 19. The delegation comprised business partners of local companies Bayon Heritage Holding Group and Signature Rice Co., Ltd. The meeting provided an opportunity for the international business representatives to gain a deeper understanding of Cambodia’s investment potential, investment incentive policies and facilitation measures being implemented by the Cambodian government. The discussions focused on exploring potential joint-venture opportunities in key sectors, particularly agro-industry, food processing and agricultural produce processing, including paddy rice and cashew nuts. The potential investments are expected to contribute to increasing exports of Cambodian products to regional and global markets. The delegation also explored investment opportunities in infrastructure development and logistics systems, which are considered important to strengthening Cambodia’s supply chains and supporting economic growth.
- The Ministry of Tourism and private-sector representatives held a meeting with aviation stakeholders on August 19 to discuss a proposal to establish a high-level national taskforce to support the recovery of Cambodia’s tourism and aviation sectors. The Minister of Tourism said the meeting provided a platform for frank and constructive dialogue to identify practical solutions to enhance the competitiveness of Cambodia’s tourism sector and strengthen air connectivity. He underlined that tourism and aviation are strategically interconnected sectors that require close cooperation and cannot be considered separately.
- CAMGSM Plc. (Cellcard) has appointed Manu Rajan as the company's new Chief Executive Officer (CEO), effective from August 18, taking over the role from the company's previous CEO, Kok Leong Yap, after roughly one year. According to an official announcement published to the Cambodia Securities Exchange (CSX) on August 17, the change in leadership was finalised following a resolution passed by CAMGSM's Board of Directors on August 14. In addition to his role as CAMGSM CEO, Rajan will also be succeeding Kok Leong Yap as the new CEO of the Digital, Communication & Technology (DCT) Division at the Royal Group of Companies. Rajan last served as the Division CEO of Wing Cambodia and Group Chief Commercial Officer of the Royal Group of Companies.
Watch the 20 August 2026 Daily Update in Khmer below: